BioShock: Ethereal
by xtac2
Summary: Harvey Steel didn't ask to work for Mr. Ryan. Hell, he never even asked to be in Rapture. However, one final job could bring him the peace he so desperately longs for. But nothing ever goes as planned for Mr. Steel. The things that haunt his past, will fuse together with a new mystery. In an epic twist of fate, Harvey Steel will attempt to uncover the secrets of... Lunopolis.
1. Chapter 1: Sink or swim

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own the BioShock franchise (wish I did) and I disclaim any references and things I use from the franchise. Other than that, everything else is mine.**

**Enjoy my prequel sequel, who the hell knows what to call it? Enjoy**

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><p>BioShock: <strong>Ethereal<strong>

Chapter 1: Sink or swim

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><p><em>"You've come all this way for retribution, yet you don't even know why. I suppose that's only the nature, of a man entitled to the sweat of his brow."<em>

_- **Godric Helmsley, 1956**_

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><p>"Mr. Sinclair will be with you shortly." said the receptionist, halfheartedly, not even bothering to look up at Harvey. She was too busy smearing lipstick on her peachy white face.<p>

"Where does he finds these broads?" Harvey laughed with himself. He turned around and walked away from the reception desk towards a sitting area and stopped before the glass wall. He stared blankly out into the city.

"What brings a good-looking lady, like yourself, to Rapture?" He said loudly, making sure the receptionist could hear him well enough, "Shitty place to call home if you ask me." He then pulled out a carton of cigarettes, a box of matches, and proceeded to casually have himself a smoke.

"There's no smoking in here, sir." the receptionist said. Harvey turned around, cigarette between his teeth. He took it out, then exhaled slowly,

"Maybe if your boss didn't take his sweet ass time, I wouldn't have to bother you Miss. But then again, that ash tray on your desk was singing my favorite tune."

The receptionist glared at Harvey, annoyed she was caught in her lie. She then shook her head and returned to work. Harvey smiled and went back to staring out the window.

Harvey Steel wasn't a Rapture man, the water made him feel uncomfortable. There was something too unpleasantly pleasant about Rapture that always put him on edge. The whole damn city was full of crazy bastards. But Harvey went where Ryan told him to go, for now. Harvey wore grey striped dress pants, black dress shoes, a white button up (sleeves always rolled up) with a grey tie, and his brown leather jacket (with his holster vest on underneath it).

"Nothing quite like it, huh?" came a voice from behind Harvey. Harvey turned around to find one Mr. Augustus Sinclair walking up to him.

"Mr. Sinclair." Harvey said.

"Aw come on now," Sinclair said warmly, "Call me Augustus. Let's not get to formal just yet, makes me all itchy."

Harvey didn't respond.

"Why don't we take this one into my office kid?"

Harvey nodded.

Sinclair led Harvey through the doors to his office. It was filled to the brim with Sinclair memorabilia and his desk overflowed with Plasmids and papers. Sinclair took a seat behind his desk and beckoned Harvey to take a seat.

"Talk about self-admiration." Harvey said to himself, taking a seat, as he looked at a picture of a proud, much younger, Sinclair on Sinclair's desk.

"To what do I owe the pleasure, Mr. Steel?" Sinclair asked.

"I'm here on behalf of Mr. Ryan." Harvey began, "He wanted to come himself, but couldn't afford to get away."

"Man's got a city to run." Sinclair responded, "If you can call it running. More like crawling from where I'm sitting, but I trust you aint here to make small talk. So what is it, kid?"

Harvey leaned forward and put his hands on his knees,

"I'm not gonna lie to you Mr. Sinclair, Mr. Ryan isn't happy with your business. You have patients running amuck in the streets. Plasmid abuse beyond containment, what the hell are you doing about it?"

Sinclair licked his lips, "Andrew needs to let me to my job, and I have it under control. I assure you, Mr. Ryan has nothing to worry about."

"The splicers are getting worse, and Mrs. Lamb is becoming an issue by herself." Harvey stated.

"Mrs. Lamb you say? Her time's coming to an end here in Rapture. As for the splicers, well I'm developing a new Plasmid to deal with them too."

"Times a tick'n Mr. Sinclair." Harvey said as he stood up, "This city goes to shit, Mr. Ryan will make sure a bullet finds a cozy home in your head."

Sinclair bit his tongue, spitefully, "You got nerve threatening a man in his own home, I like that kid. But I'll deal with Mr. Ryan's problems, like I always have. Don't you or Mr. Ryan go worrying till it's all said and done."

"I hope so... for your sake." Harvey said, as he turned and started to walk away, "Because it'll be me that puts that takes the shot, and I don't do the mercy rule."

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><p>Harvey left Sinclair's building and got on the Rapture Metro. He was alone and the only sound was soft jazz from the metro speakers. Just then a voice came over the speaker,<p>

"Harvey listen up, meet me at the Kashmir. I have an interesting job offer for you, courtesy of Mr. Ryan."

The voice cut out and the jazz resumed.

"Richard? What the hell does he want?" Harvey said to himself.

Harvey took the metro to the Atrium and found his way over to the Kashmir restaurant. He wasn't fond of the Kashmir, but it was well enough. It didn't take him long to find Richard. Richard was an average sized man and had red hair. He always wore the same maroon suit and black fedora, and he was always drunk. So naturally, Harvey walked downstairs to the cocktail lounge and found Richard siting at a booth, already drinking.

"Harvey! "The drunk Richard said, "Have a seat, take your shoes off, and order a drink." Richard beckoned to a waitress and a blonde girl came over to the table,

"Can I get you gentlemen something to drink?" she asked, pleasantly.

"Triple rye for me, sugar." He said raising his eyebrows at the young girl, "Don't be stingy on that ice now, you hear?" She smiled and turned towards Harvey,

"For you, sir?" she asked.

"Water with lemon." Harvey responded, as he took off his jacket and sat down.

Richard laughed and spoke up to the waitress, "Don't listen to him, He'll have a single malt scotch."

"The water's fine." Harvey said as the waitress walked away, "And don't forget the lemon!" he shouted.

"What's wrong with you?" asked Richard.

"What's the job offer?" replied Harvey.

"Straight to business then." Laughed Richard, "You first. How'd the meeting with cowboy ass clown go?"

"He's dealing with it. Mrs. Lamb, the splicers, says he has it all under control." Harvey replied, "But I don't think he knows what the hell he's doing anymore. Might have to follow up on that."

Richard nodded, "I'll let Mr. Ryan know we gotta tighten the leash up."

The waitress came back with their drinks. Harvey took a sip of his water then pulled out a smoke.

"Your turn." Harvey said to Richard who had buried his first drink.

"Like I said," Richard Began, "Mr. Ryan has a job offer for you, I think you'll find this one to be much more fulfilling."

"That would be a first." Said Harvey, sarcastically.

"Look, wise guy," Richard started, "Andrew knows you've been poking around the old Bathysphere's, buy'n up parts and stuff. You wanna leave or somethin? Sure looks that way to Mr. Ryan."

"I don't have to listen to this." Harvey said, about to get up, but he was stopped.

"Relax." Richard said calmly, "Mr. Ryan has done good by you, by all of us. You just wanna give that all up? Fine by me, but have you forgotten the mess he got you out of back in New York?"

Harvey turned and looked out the window, "I've paid for MY sins. I've spent seven fucked up years at the bottom of the sea, doing all of his dirty work, regretting every minute of it. I'm done with him and I'm done with this place."

"Mr. Ryan acknowledges all the work you've done for him, that's why he's offering you this job, this last job. This is your way out on good terms, don't you want your freedom to be justified." Richard said.

Harvey glared at Richard, "I don't owe that man shit, and I've done my time down in this shithole of a city. I'm a free man."

"Then prove it, finish what you started." Richard replied.

Harvey stared at Richard for a moment, wanting to leave but then said,

"What's the job?"

Richard smiled and took a sip from his glass before speaking, "Have you ever heard of Lunopolis?" he asked.

"The city on the moon?" Harvey laughed, "Yea sure, in children's stories."

"What if I told you it was real?" Richard replied.

"I'd tell you to see a doctor." Harvey said.

Richard smiled, "It is real."

"It's a bunch of horseshit." Harvey laughed, "It was the media, and the freaking government trying to cover of up disappearances they wanted wiped off the grid."

"Just like the Columbia cover-up, right?" Richard asked.

Harvey stopped laughing, "That's different and you know it. People saw Columbia, people have been there and back and have seen it. Columbia's up there, but it aint out there if you follow me."

Richard shrugged, "I'm not one to argue with Mr. Ryan on what he tells me. More so on what he asks me to do." Richard then pulled out a briefcase from under the table and slid it across the table to Harvey.

"What's this?" Harvey asked, suspiciously.

"Open it." Richard said.

Harvey pulled the briefcase in close, unlatched the two clamps, and opened it. It was filled to the top with paper. He pulled out the piece on top. It appeared to be a picture ad. There was a grand city, and it was under a large glass dome. The planet earth could be seen in the far background. A blonde haired women was in the upper right hand corner, pointing at earth and smiling. She was wearing some sort of white bulky suit and had a glass bowl over her head. There was a caption next to her. Harvey read it aloud.

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><p>"Why live <em>there<em> when perfection lies just beyond the sky?"

"**Lunopolis**: A home among the stars"

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><p>Harvey concluded, "Is this some kind of joke?" he asked.<p>

"Not at all." Richard replied.

"Well then I think you and Mr. Ryan can go fuck yourselves. I can find my own way out of Rapture, goodbye Richard." Harvey said as he got up and began to walk away.

"Mr. Ryan is offering two hundred grand," Richard spoke out to Harvey, "And all you gotta do is deliver this briefcase to a contact in New York."

Harvey stopped in his tracks. He gritted his teeth, "Come on, and just walk away already." He said to himself, but he couldn't resist. He turned around and went back to Richards's booth.

"Two hundred G's?" Harvey asked.

"American too." Richard smiled, "I thought that might inspire you."

"How do I know Mr. Ryan can deliver that?" Asked Harvey.

"Come on Harvey," Richard laughed, "Mr. Ryan always delivers."

"Who's this "contact" I'm delivering to?" Harvey asked.

"All the information you need is in the briefcase. You can go through it on your way up, alright?" Richard replied.

"I have to leave today?" Harvey asked

"Within the hour. Bathysphere Station" Richard replied.

Harvey didn't respond.

"I'll take your silence as your acceptance." Richard said as he pulled out another briefcase. He opened it and brought out a piece of paper and pen,

"I don't have to explain how this works, do I?" Richard asked, rhetorically.

"I'm not signing a contract." Harvey refused.

"It's strictly for legal purposes," Richard stated, "Besides, you know Mr. Ryan likes things…orderly, to say the least. Consider it your letter of resignation." Richard smiled.

Harvey snatched up the paper and read it carefully.

"Enjoying yourself, are you?" sarcastically asked Richard.

Harvey grunted, "I guess it's clean enough." He said and picked up the pen. Richard spoke up before he did sign it.

"Just so we're clear," he said, "Once you leave Rapture, you aint ever coming back. The isolation is permanent, for you at least."

"Do I look like I'd want to come back to this fucking place?" laughed Harvey, as he signed the contract with ease.

"Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow," began Richard, as he took a large gulp from his drink, "Hell maybe not in a hundred fucking years. But one day, I swear, you'll be staring down the barrel of a gun, asking yourself "Why didn't I just listen to my dear friend Richard, and stay in that wonderful city of Rapture?" But by then it'll be too late, won't it?" Richard concluded.

"We're not friends, and I'll never wish I was back in here." Harvey replied, "And I don't plan on looking down the barrel of a gun anytime soon."

"Oh, come on now," Richard pleaded, "Do you really think you can just give up on a life you've always known, to lead a, a "normal" one? Normal to you will always be another gun in your hand, shooting some poor bastard up for some other rich bastard. You leading a normal life is as likely as me quitting the bottle. It's a nice thought, really, but it'll never happen. You either sink to the bottom or swim to the bitter end Harvey boy, and you're a swimmer."

Richard laughed hysterically at his own comment and continued to drink.

"You're a drunk" Harvey said, then picked up the briefcase and turned around to leave,

"And you're wrong about me!" Harvey shouted over his shoulder as he left the restaurant.

"We'll see about that!" Richard shouted back, still laughing uncontrollably.

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><p>Harvey walked out of the Kashmir and into the Atrium. He then took the tunnel to the Bathysphere Station. The tunnel was quite, no one had used the Bathysphere in a long time. Not since the lock down.<p>

"Those fucking crazy bastards." Harvey said to himself, shaking his head, "All I have to do is get to New York and I'm done."

He reached the end of the tunnel and found himself in the Bathysphere lounge, also dead quite. Suddenly, a voice came from the entrance to one of the Bathyspheres.

"I thought I might catch you before you left." The voice said.

Harvey walked over and saw the man, "I thought I'd seen your bald head for the last time, Fontaine."

The man, Fontaine laughed, "You always were my favorite of Ryan's boys."

"You falling in love with me there Frank." Said Harvey, sarcastically.

Fontaine smiled.

"Why are you here?" asked Harvey.

"The question is why you are?" Fontaine replied.

Harvey didn't know how to respond, he then said, "I'm getting the fuck out of this place."

"Indeed." Fontaine said, "But surely Ryan's isn't letting his best man go so easily, is he? What was the price for your freedom? Perhaps it involves that briefcase you're holding?"

"I don't know what you're talking about." said Harvey.

"Don't play coy," Fontaine said, "I know all about your little rally going down. Ryan thinks he's so smart. But for all his attributes, I wouldn't accuse him of cleverness. Who do you think tipped him off about what's in that briefcase?"

"What do you want?" asked Harvey.

"A little parlay, some small talk before you scurry." Said Fontaine, "Don't let yourself get sucked up into the shit storm Ryan's been brewing up there, he's bad for business. That man has his own agenda, you are far from done working for him my dear boy. But when you do figure out what's going on and get caught up in it all, of course in getting there I mean, find a man named Christopher Taft. He's an old friend of mine, of a sort. I need you to do something for me, he'll help you out."

"What the hell are you talking about?" Harvey asked.

"I think you'll find out soon enough, dear boy." Fontaine laughed as he opened the Bathysphere for Harvey, "I pay much more handsomely than that fool Ryan."

Harvey looked at Fontaine suspiciously then got into the Bathysphere. Before Fontaine closed it up he said,

"And do tell Mr. Helmsley, when you see him, that he owes me. He owes Frank Fontaine"

Harvey wanted to speak up but Fontaine shut the Bathysphere before he could. The Bathysphere started up and jazz began to play overhead. The sphere sealed tight and began to un-dock. AS he sphere pulled away from the station, Fontaine waived ominously at Harvey. Harvey shook his head and took a seat. He then opened up the briefcase. He pulled out the ad and turned it around, there was some writing on it.

"Michael Roland, 1050 Rome St. New York, New York." He said out loud,

"Sounds easy enough." He said as he turned the paper back over.

"Lunopolis, home among the stars." He laughed to himself.

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><p><strong>(Updated to feel more genuine)<strong>

**Let me know what you think.**


	2. Chapter 2: Let Your Burdens Go

Chapter 2: Let Your Burdens Go

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><p>Harvey didn't feel nervous, working for Ryan had absolved his inner emotions. Though he was anxious. After all, he hadn't been above the surface since 1949. He didn't seem to notice his foot tapping the floor. The water around the Bathysphere began to churn. His foot was tapping much faster now. He took out a cigarette and lit it.<p>

As the Bathysphere breached the surface, Harvey inhaled deeply, letting the cigarette smoke wash away his anxiety for a few seconds. The Bathysphere jolted out of the water and sent Harvey to the ground, choking on smoke. A thick cloud of white came sputtering out of his mouth as he tried to reclaim his lungs.

Harvey found his composure and stood up. The Bathysphere door opened with a hiss and a whine. He walked out, and found himself in the familiar, cylindrical interior of one of the many lighthouses scattered around the Atlantic. He turned, walked up the winding stone steps, and then walked through the front door of the lighthouse. It was dark out, Harvey thought it was probably late in the night or early morning. Just then, the moon came out from behind some clouds. Harvey smiled as the light hit his eyes. At long last, he was out of Rapture.

He looked out at the wooden dock and a jet plane was resting on the surface of the water. Harvey walked down the dock and could see a man standing under a lamp. He was wearing a black suit and was reading what looked like a _LIFE_ magazine.

"Excuse me?" asked Harvey, trying to get the man's attention.

The man looked up.

"Are you taking passengers?" Harvey asked.

"Depends," the man said, closing the magazine, "Are you Mr. Steel?"

"Yea, I'm him." Harvey shrugged.

"Good. Let's get going." The man turned and opened a door into the plane, "After you."

Harvey walked forward and peered into the plane before climbing in. He got into the cockpit and sat in the passenger seat. He set the briefcase down and took off his jacket. The man followed in behind him. The man slumped down into his chair and started pressing buttons and flipping switches. The plane came roaring to life. The whole time Harvey was staring out of the window.

"Alright then," the man said, "I'll be your captain this morning. Buckle up and try not to look so damn nervous. No room for spoiled nerve on my plane."

Harvey reluctantly did as he was asked. The captain steered the plane away from the dock and out onto the open water. When the plane was far enough from the lighthouse, the captain launched it forward. Harvey felt uneasy as the plane jolted forward and rushed across the water. Just as Harvey thought he couldn't take it any longer, it was over as the plane launched into the air. For a while, the plane climbed. The plane finally leveled out and Harvey's stomach began to settle.

"You alright?!" the captain shouted over the noise of the plane.

"I'll be fine!" Harvey shouted as he laid his head back and closed his eyes, "We're heading to New York?!"

"Of course!" The captain said, "That's what I was paid to do!"

"Just wake me up when we get there." Harvey said.

The captain nodded and returned to flying.

Harvey woke all of a sudden, the captain was staring down at him.

"Rise and shine, Mr. Steel." The captain started, "It's gonna be a nice day and I won't have you sleeping on my plane any longer."

"What time is it?" Harvey groaned, groggy from the nap.

"High noon, you've been sleeping a while." The captain said, "Saying all sorts of strange things while you were at it too."

"Yea, like what?" Harvey asked as he stood up from the chair, rubbing his sore neck. Harvey grabbed his jacket and the briefcase then the captain led Harvey outside onto a wooden dock. The skies were clear and New York City glistened under the sunlight.

"Well you said some names like Walters, Roland, and Helmsley I believe it was. You said something about the moon and… oh yea you mentioned Annie, she your wife or something?"

"No." Harvey said bitterly. He walked down the dock while staring at the city, still getting used to the sunlight, "We outside Middletown?" Harvey asked the captain.

"That's right, Westside." The captain said, impressed, "You been here before?"

"I lived here… for a time." Harvey said as he and the captain walked towards the city, "I was hospitalized here pretty early in the war. Enlisted when I was eighteen back in forty two. Only spent a year and a half in the Navy till I got busted up. Damn Japs nearly killed me."

"I'll drink to that." The captain concurred.

"I recovered pretty quickly but I was already discharged. Joined the FBI six or so months before the war officially ended. Spent five years running with the bureau." Harvey concluded.

"How'd that go?" the captain asked.

"I spent the first couple of years chasing false leads on the Vox Populi. That got me nowhere, but it did lead me to something else."

"And what was that?"

"The Vox Populi had a contact in New York. I spent three years investigating a Mob man named Clyde Walters, maybe you've heard of him."

"Well sure. Most folk in my line of work have. I remember his airship good and well, she was a beauty. They buried him up real well."

"And you're surprised?" Harvey said.

"Can't say I am." The captain said, "So what happened with you and Mr. Walters?"

"Long story short, I was poking around in places he didn't want me to. He set me up and showed me who really owned this town. Beat me at every turn and then I lost everything. My job, my home, my rep… my wife and my daughter." Harvey said, bitterly.

"Is that how you ended up in Rapture? Got run out of New York?"

"Mr. Ryan saved my ass from death row back in forty nine. That doesn't mean I like the man, just means I owed him. So here I am, seven years later, doing one last job."

"Mr. Ryan seems like a decent man." The captain argued.

"Well you don't know him like I do." Harvey said.

The two men reached the end of the dock and made their way into the city. Harvey couldn't help but feel overwhelmed. There was a black coach waiting by the curb off of West 55th. The captain led Harvey to it.

"You got me a ride?" Harvey asked, smiling.

"Courtesy of Mr. Ryan. Don't worry, the driver doesn't know who you are. Your record's clean up here, Mr. Ryan paid me extra to make sure you were off the books."

"Much appreciated." Harvey said.

"This is where I leave you." the captain said, "Just tell the driver where you want to go. It's none of my business whether you do what Mr. Ryan asked you to do or not."

"Thank you, Captain" Harvey said as the driver of the coach opened the door for him to get in.

"Call me Tom." The captain smiled, "My plane's usually docked around here, should you ever need to get the hell out of somewhere else again."

"I'll take you up on that one day." Harvey smiled and got into the coach. The driver closed the door, walked around to the driver's seat and got in.

"Where to Sir?" The driver asked.

"1050 Rome St." Harvey replied.

The driver nodded, started the engine, and drove off.

"Is the Dewitt Park still up on 11th?" Harvey asked.

"Yes sir it is." The driver replied, "Do you want to go?"

"No" Harvey replied, "Was just curious."

Harvey stared out the window for a while. After some time had passed, he brought the briefcase up onto his lap and opened it. He began pulling out papers. At the bottom of the briefcase, Harvey found a Broadsider pistol. He pulled it out and inspected it. It had a full twelve shots in it and looked relatively new. He had left most of his arsenal back in Rapture and hadn't had time to collect them along with many other of his belongings. It was nice to have some security again, though he didn't know why it was in the briefcase?

"We're here Mr. Steel." The driver said.

Harvey looked up at the man, suspiciously.

"How does he know who I am?" Harvey thought to himself, "I thought Tom said I was off the books."

"Yea, thanks." Harvey spoke up.

The driver got out of the car and walked around to Harvey's door. Harvey cocked the pistol. The driver opened the door and reached into the car with a knife in hand, but Harvey was quicker. Harvey grabbed the driver's arm and pulled him in, the driver dropped the knife on the floor of the car. They wrestled around a bit before Harvey threw the driver against the seat and slammed the door closed with his free hand. Harvey then pressed his forearm into the driver's neck and pointed the pistol at his forehead.

"Who are you, and who do you work for?" Harvey shouted.

"I… can't…breath" the driver was choking.

Harvey eased up only a bit so the man could speak.

"Tell me who the fuck sent you here." Harvey said, more angrily this time, "Now!"

"You're everything they told me you'd be, Mr. Steel." The man laughed.

"What the hell do you mean?" Harvey asked.

The man laughed harder. Harvey punched him in the mouth.

"I will kill you." Harvey threatened, "Who do you work for?"

"Mr. Walters wouldn't want me to give him up." The driver laughed, spitting up blood, "Whoops, I guess that slipped."

Harvey stared horrifyingly at the man, "You're lying. The feds shot his airship down years ago, he died in the crash."

"Okay." The driver laughed, "This would have been much easier if you'd have just let me kill you. But now I suppose you'll have to go get caught up in everything yourself."

"What do you mean?" Harvey asked.

"You might as well kill me." The driver pleaded, "I'm a dead man anyway. They'll be after me now. I failed him big time."

"Who'd you fail? Walters? Why did you have to kill me?"

"You don't get it. You didn't get it back then either. Things are much bigger than you and I. You shouldn't have come back to New York Mr. Steel, you shouldn't have taken the job. You should have just stayed in Rapture like you were supposed to."

"Why?" Harvey begged for the answer.

"Things are gonna get real ugly for you Mr. Steel, real quick. I suggest you leave that briefcase with me, and forget about all of this. I'll turn the other way and you'll be gone. No hard feelings, no one has to know you're alive. Because I promise you one thing, you won't survive where you're going."

"If Walters is alive, I'm going to find him and I'm going to kill him." Harvey said.

"Then you're already dead... just like me." The driver laughed hysterically. All of a sudden, the driver made a biting sound and he began to foam at the mouth.

"Hey!" Harvey shouted, shaking the man, but he was dead. "Son of a bitch!"

Harvey put the pistol in his holster vest then checked the man. He didn't have anything on him accept for a ring on his right hand. It was a black ring with what looked like a raven on it. Harvey took the ring, grabbed his briefcase, and got out of the car. He looked around. It was a relatively peaceful scene, nothing seemed out of the ordinary to say the least.

In front of him, a brick office building stood nine stories high. There was a sign outside the set of front doors to the building, Harvey read it under his breath,

"Securis? That can't be right. Securis is all off grid, private contracting, at least in Rapture it is. But this is 1050 Rome St. I guess my guy Roland works for Securis."

Harvey shrugged and walked into the building. The main lobby was bleak. It had tan walls with some wood paneling. There was a sitting area off to Harvey's left. Harvey made his way over to the reception desk.

There was a black haired, young lady talking on a phone, "Please hold." She was saying to someone. She then looked up at Harvey, "Do you have an appointment, sir?" she asked

"Yea" Harvey said unsurely, "I'm here for Mr. Roland."

The girl stared at Harvey, then picked up a second phone up from her desk, she spun and dialed.

"Yes hello?" she said, "I'm sorry to bother you but there's a man here for..." She was cut off and waited a minute, "I'll let him know." She hung up the phone then looked to Harvey, "If you'd please take a seat, someone will be out here shortly to take you to see Mr. Roland."

"Yea, thanks." Harvey said unsurely. He walked to the sitting area and took a seat facing the reception desk. There was an elevator off to the right of the reception desk. Two larger men were guarding it, they were wearing black suits. As he was staring at them, a man approached Harvey.

"Hello." The man said. Harvey jumped.

"I'm sorry to have frightened you. You are?" The man asked.

Harvey stared at the man for a moment before saying, "You can call me Brooks, Mr. Brooks."

The man smiled at Harvey, "Very well Mr. Brooks, I will escort you to Mr. Roland. Follow me please."

The man led Harvey to the Elevator. One of the guards stopped Harvey, "Your weapon sir."

Harvey didn't budge. The man escorting him spoke up, "You'll get it back when you leave, it's just a precaution, you understand yes?"

Harvey bit his lip, then reluctantly handed over his weapon.

"Excellent, on we go." The man said, cheerfully. The elevator doors opened and Harvey and the man got in. The doors closed and the man pressed the number six." The elevator began to move, downward?

"We're going down?" Harvey asked.

"Most of the upper floors aren't being used, we have a secure underground facility here at Securis. It allows for more suitable working conditions, given our field of work."

"I thought Securis made bulkheads." Said Harvey.

"Yes of course." The man laughed, "But that's merely one of our business practices. Securis has more to offer than airlocks for underwater cities, you know?" the man said cheerfully.

"Right." Harvey said, suspiciously, "Mr. Roland works down here?"

"Yes." The man continued, "In fact, Roland is one of our most important assets here at this facility. We wouldn't have made it this far without him. A complete revolutionary in our work."

"I'm not even going to pretend to know what you're talking about." Harvey said, sarcastically.

"Oh you'll understand soon enough." The man said cheerfully as the elevator doors opened. They walked out into a narrow, white hallway with doors on either side.

"Right this way." The man said. He led Harvey down the hallway and stopped him at the third door on the left.

"Wait here a moment." The man said as he opened the door in front of him, walked through, and closed it behind him.

"Just fucking great." Harvey complained. He was taking out a cigarette when he looked farther down the hallway and noticed an open door. He walked down to investigate. He stood in front of the room, it was dark. He moved his hand along the inside wall of the room and found a switch. He flicked it up and light flooded the room. What he found, was interesting.

There were racks upon racks of what looked like weapons, but not like any weapon he'd ever seen. He walked in and looked around. It was an entire arsenal! There was a table in the middle of the room with a dozen or so gray bottles sitting on it. He approached them.

Harvey picked up one of the bottles. He recognized the bottle as a Sinclair, it was a Plasmid! But one not familiar to him. What was it doing in here?

"LP043-039" Harvey read the label of the plasmid, "What the fuck?"

He opened the bottle and was about to drink a bit when a voice came from the doorway.

"I guess the phrase "wait here a moment" means something entirely different in Rapture. Or are you always this persistent?"

Harvey turned to the doorway and saw the man he'd rode the elevator down with, standing there.

"Who the hell are you?"

"They told me you wouldn't be a problem. They said you'd be taken care of. I can't work with people poking around my facility" The man said, annoyed, "That idiot Martin."

"Was that the driver you sent for me? Because he killed himself when I caught him trying to sink a knife into my chest."

"Yes...he was never very reliable" The man concurred.

"Where's Roland?" Harvey asked.

"I'm afraid you Roland is not taking any visitors. But seeing as how you're already here, I'm afraid we can't allow you to leave."

Just then, the man thrust his arm outward and a gust of something came rushing at Harvey. As soon as the "something" hit him, it sent him flying to the back of the room. He crashed into one of the weapon racks and fell to the floor.

Two figures came into the room and walked over to Harvey and grabbed him by the arms. They then hoisted him up and carried him over to where the man was standing by the door.

"Poor Mr. Steel, never can quite catch a break can you? What you get for dealing in things you know nothing about. Well… it'll be much more costly this time around, I assure you. Take him to my lab."

Harvey could barely make out the words because he was fading out of consciousness. The man spoke up again,

"Let your burdens go Mr. Steel, I'll see you on the other side, hmm?" The man laughed and the two men carried Harvey out of the room and down the hallway to the elevator.

As the elevator doors closed shut, Harvey's mind fell to black, and he remembered no more.

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><p><strong>Updated from previous version<strong>

**Hope you're enjoying so keep on reading**


	3. Chapter 3: Welcome to Lunopolis

Chapter 3: Welcome to Lunopolis

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><p>Harvey woke to the sound of a Bach's "On the G String" playing from a phonograph nearby. He opened his eyes slowly and found that he was strapped to a chair, by the wrists and ankles. He looked around the room to the best he could. The room was quite dark but it looked like an old hospital room. With white walls, counter tops, and a small steel tray sitting next to him. There were several syringes on the table. He tried shaking free from the straps but they were bound tight.<p>

"Shit." He said, as he laid his head back in the chair, out of frustration. Just then, he heard the sound of a door opening from behind him.

"Hello?" Harvey said.

"Good evening Mr. Steel." The voice said. Harvey recognized it as the man he'd followed in the elevator.

Harvey heard the man close the door and walk up behind him,

"I hope you slept well." The man said as he began to lower Harvey's chair until Harvey was looking up at the ceiling.

"Who the hell are you?" Harvey asked.

"I'm Doctor Rosen." The man said, as he rolled up Harvey's sleeve and began to sterilize his arm. "But it doesn't matter really."

"What are you doing?" Harvey squirmed.

"I told you'd it would be costly." Dr. Rosen said as he grabbed one of the syringes, "Don't worry Mr. Steel, it'll all be over soon."

Harvey started to panic and began shaking in his chair, trying to break free!

"Hold still Mr. Steel." Dr. Rosen said, impatiently, "Before I make things more uncomfortable."

"Go to hell!" Harvey shouted.

Just then, the door opened again.

"Ah good, I was just about to…"

Dr. Rosen was cut off as the sound of a gunshot pierced the room. Harvey looked towards Dr. Rosen as the man fell to the floor. Harvey tried to look behind him but couldn't. A women then approached Harvey and began undoing the straps on his hands, very quickly. She was a pretty girl and had black hair. She looked much younger than him.

"Um, thanks?" Harvey said, unsurely.

"Don't thank me yet Mr. Steel." The women said as she moved down to his feet straps, "We're a long way from safety."

"What are you talking about?" Harvey asked as he rubbed his sore wrists.

The women finished and then walked over to, the now dead, Dr. Rosen. She began to search him.

"Who are you?" Harvey asked as he got up from the chair.

"I'm sorry, but we don't have time for a meet and greet Mr. Steel. Go to the room across the hall, I believe you'll find everything you came in with there."

"I'm not doing anything till I get some answers!" Harvey exclaimed.

The women turned and glared at Harvey.

"Look," she began, "Unless you WANT to die, you'll do as I say. We don't have time to sit around, asking questions. "

Harvey didn't respond.

"GO!" she shouted.

Harvey did as he was asked and went into the other room. Sure enough there was a table with all of his things. He quickly put on the jacket and holster, holstered the pistol, grabbed the briefcase and ran out into the hallway where the women was waiting.

"Ready?" she asked.

"Sure." Harvey grunted.

She began walking down the hall towards an elevator. The hallway was much shorter than the one Harvey had previously been in.

"Are we still in the Securis building?" Harvey asked.

"Yes." She responded. They reached the elevator and the elevator doors opened. Two men in black suits were standing in the way. The two men began to draw weapons but the women had hers pistol out first. She shot them both dead.

"Jesus!" Harvey shouted.

"Jesus doesn't have anything to do with this, Mr. Steel." The women said as she got into the elevator, Harvey followed. The women took out a key and inserted it into a key slot on the elevator panel. She turned the key and the elevator doors closed.

"Can you tell me your name at least?" Harvey asked. The women turned to Harvey,

"My name is Violet Mason, Mr. Steel." She began, "I represent someone who's trying to help with you. I was sent here to extract you and bring you back."

"Bring me back where?"

"Home." She said as she stared forwards.

"Look lady," Harvey began, "This is a big misunderstanding. I'm just here to deliver a briefcase to Mr. Roland. I don't want to go anywhere with you. I just want my money and I want to get the hell out of here."

"You don't seem to understand, Mr. Steel." Violet said, "There is no going back, not until this is over. People want you dead."

"Who?" Harvey asked.

"The people who also want me dead." Violet said bitterly. Just then the elevator doors opened.

"I suggest you grab one of those tommy guns." Violet said, pointing to one of the dead guard's weapons. Harvey picked it up and followed Violet off of the elevator. They were walking along a steel platform. Lanterns hung from above them and the walls were all made of rock and earth.

"How far down are we?" Harvey asked.

"Let's just say no one would come running if you cried for help" Violet responded. There was a set of double doors at the end of the platform. Violet opened it up quietly and walked through. Harvey followed.

It opened up into a large, cave like room below them. In the center of the room was a large spherical pod. Harvey thought it looked a lot like a Bathysphere but it was much taller, slimmer, and had several tubes attached to the bottom. The object was attached to some sort of movable platform that laid on a track. The track led into a tunnel on the far side from where Violet and Harvey were standing. Directly beneath Violet and Harvey, there was a large machine and a control panel made up of levers, gears, buttons, and flashing lights. Two men in lab coats were standing in front of it, talking. A third man was inspecting the pod. There were three guards sitting at a table next to the object in the middle.

"What now?" Harvey asked, quietly.

"That's the easy part." Violet said and pointed her pistol at one of the guards and shot several times. The guard dropped dead. The other two guards looked on in shock. Harvey then sprayed his tommy gun in their direction before they had a chance to react. They fell as well. The other three men panicked and ran.

"Come on." Violet said and ran down a flight of steel steps, off to their right. They made their way down to the bottom floor.

"Stand over by the pod, and don't touch anything." Violet said as she began to mess around with the machine's control panel.

Harvey walked over to the pod. Across the side of the pod, some writing could be made out. Harvey read it aloud,

"SP-034: Michel D. Roland. You've got to be kidding me." He turned towards Violet, "This is Michael Roland?"

"You can read… that's good" Violet said, sarcastically. Just then the pod made a hissing sound and smoke and flames began to funnel out of the bottom of it. A hatch opened up on the side of it. Violet walked over to where Harvey and the hatch were.

"Get in, Mr. Steel." She said as she climbed into the pod herself. Harvey stood in front of the hatch.

"Hell no." he began, "I'll take my chances getting out of here myself."

"Get in the pod!" she yelled.

"Not a chance lady." Harvey replied.

Violet sighed, "Look, Mr. Steel, I'm going to be honest with you. I don't like this anymore than you do, but you don't know what's at stake here. Just please trust me and get in the pod."

Harvey stared at her for a moment than back up to the landing with the door. The doors burst open and three or four guards came busting through.

"Down there!" one of them shouted and they all began to fire weapons.

"Damn it all!" Harvey shouted and climbed into the pod. The hatch closed behind him as gunfire hit the pod, not seeming to harm the material the pod was made of. There were two chairs in the pod, Violet was already sitting in one so Harvey sat in the other. The pod launched forward towards the tunnel. Harvey watched, through a window, the guards behind him messing with the control panel. They were trying to bring the pod back, but whatever Violet did, it was working. The pod raced forward and Harvey couldn't see much except for a few flashing lights within the pod. The pod picked up an incredible amount of speed.

Violet got up and began searching around the pod. She found what she was looking for and brought it out.

"Here, put this on." She said as she handed Harvey a heavy, white jumpsuit.

"What's with the costume?" Harvey asked, jokingly.

"That costume might save your life." She said as she got into one herself. She then reached behind Harvey's chair and pulled something up from behind it. The pod began to slowly come to a stop.

"Sit in the chair" she said, "and put this on."

"This shit is getting ridiculous." Harvey lashed out and sat back down in the chair. He reached for the thing Violet told him to put on and found it was a mask. The mask fit over Harvey's mouth and nose and strapped around his head. Violet sat down and put her mask on.

"What's happening?" Harvey asked nervously, "Where are we?"

"We're leaving." Violet said, "And we're somewhere beneath the surface of the Atlantic Ocean. Not sure where."

"We're going back to Rapture?" Harvey asked, in confusion.

Violet laughed, "You need to start thinking outside of the box Mr. Steel."

"Then where?" He asked, annoyed by his ignorance.

"Up, up, and away, Mr. Steel." She said jokingly.

Suddenly, the pod began to shake with an incredible force. A red light lit from within the pod and a voice on a speaker came to life.

"Attention," the voice said, "Pre-launch sequence initiated, please fasten seat straps and all loose items."

"I would do as the man says." Violet laughed as she began fastening straps around her waist and chest. Harvey nervously did as Violet did.

"I don't like flying Mrs. Mason." As Harvey finished strapping in and held his briefcase tightly.

"Then you're really gonna love this." She laughed, "And call me Violet. Mrs. Mason is my mother."

"Oxygen filtration masks initiating." The voice said.

Just then the mask on Harvey's began pumping air, Harvey stared breathing heavily.

"Try to relax Mr. Steel" Violet said through her mask, "The first time is always the hardest."

"Oxygen circulating, reclining sequence initiated." The voice said.

The chairs in the pod began to recline until both Harvey and Violet were staring out of a large window at the top of the pod. Harvey could see red lights running up a long tunnel, to which he could not see an ending.

"What's happening?!" Harvey shouted, "Violet!"

"Shut up, Mr. Steel." Violet laughed, "Try to enjoy yourself, this is the best part."

Harvey looked around the pod frantically, the voice came back over the speaker.

"Pod launch sequence countdown initiated." The voice began to countdown,

"10…9…8…7…6…5…4…3…2…1…countdown complete, pod launch."

The pod began to shake with tremendous force. It suddenly began to shoot upwards. Harvey shouted as the pod sped up faster and faster and Harvey could make out the pod passing red light after red light, shooting forever faster through the tunnel. Harvey had to close his eyes because they began to water up. The pod shot out the tunnel and up into the night sky. Harvey could not make out much due to all of the shaking but the pod was shooting higher and higher, drawing closer and closer to the sky and its end. Minutes passed and the pod seemed to only get faster, never letting up. Suddenly the dark blue of the sky was gone, and all that was left was black, and small bright specs all over the place. The pod stopped shaking and gently glided onward. The voice came back over the speaker,

"Breach of Earth's atmosphere complete, initiating second launch prep. Administering launch sedative."

"Wait, what does he mean sedative?!" Harvey shouted, "Where the hell are we?"

"Were in space Mr. Steel." Violet said, "And in case you haven't noticed, we still have to get to the moon. It's a long ways from here. Somehow, the pod can get us there in twelve hours, but I sure as hell don't want to hear you talk for that long."

The pod hissed and turned. The moon came into view of the window. Harvey looked out at it in amazement, and in a bit of horror. Just then, oxygen coming into his mask had a taste.

"The air tastes funny?" Harvey asked, "I don't want to be knocked out again Mrs. Mason!"

"Not my choice." She shouted, "But it'll shut you up till we get there so you won't hear me complaining."

"Oh for Christ's sake!" Harvey shouted as his eyes began to get heavy. He started to get drowsy and his vision began to blur.

"I'm getting… really sick of… this…" he tried to get his groggy words out, "shit."

"5…4…3…2…1…" the voice said, "Launch active."

The pod roared to life once more and shot off towards the moon. But Harvey and Violet were out cold by the time it did.

Harvey woke, still in the chair of the pod. However, the pod wasn't shaking violently, it was sailing across the void of space. He felt… different. He was still looking out of the upper window, but he felt right side up.

"Welcome back." Violet said from next to him. Harvey looked over at her and she was working on some sort of control panel."

"What are you doing?" he asked.

"We're currently flying parallel with the moon. Lunopolis is on the opposite side of it. I'm directing the pod safely there." Violet replied, "You sure have a lot of questions."

"You think." Harvey responded, "I'm supposed to be halfway to Mexico by now. Now I'm not even on the fucking planet."

"Don't feel too overwhelmed, it can feel that way sometimes." Violet tried to comfort Harvey.

Harvey looked out at the moon when suddenly a faint object could be soon in the distance.

"What is that that?" Harvey asked, suspiciously.

"That's home." Violet responded, coldly, "That's Lunopolis."

The object came into better view. All in all, it looked sort of like the picture. However, there were three extremely large domes. The size of the glass domes were much underestimated. Under one of the glass domes (the largest dome) a humongous city stood. A city that looked much like Rapture that spread across the entire surface under the dome. The second largest dome contained a city that looked much more like Columbia. There was a very long glass tunnel, with its own glass dome in the middle of it, connecting the two domes. The pod passed by the Rapture looking city. Within the third largest dome, a humongous palace stood. The three domes created a triangle and between the three large domes, there were dozens of much smaller domes, all of varying sizes and containing different things. Some of these domes were elevated much higher of the surface of the moon by large metal poles. Dozens upon dozens of glass tunnels connected all of the domes. Within the tunnels, transit cars could be seen passing to and from. The dome in the center of them all, shone brightly.

"I don't know what to say." Harvey said.

"Well what did you expect?" Violet said honesty, "This place isn't like any place you've seen."

"Those cities, one of them looks like Rapture." Harvey said.

"You've got it all wrong. The design for Rapture came from here. As did Columbia. Comstock and Ryan just modified the two respective cities to meet their demands. But everything started with this place. Lunopolis officially went under construction in 1882. It was finished in 1901, due to the complexity of it. That's when people started leaving Earth to come here. Of course no one talks about it because it was covered up. No one really knows how Helmsley got it up here but he did. The city that looks like Rapture is called Cambridge, the other one that looks like Colombia is called New Hæven. New Hæven came first but revolutionaries wanted something different than New Hæven, so Cambridge was built. It's all very technical and political."

"What about that palace?" Harvey asked.

"That's where Mr. Helmsley lives. Virginia Palace, named it after his wife." Violet said, "He owns Lunopolis. The two cities have their own respective laws and leaders but those leaders answer to Helmsley. He created Lunopolis. He's God up here."

Harvey looked at Violet like she was crazy.

"What about all the other domes?" Harvey asked.

"Most of them are public areas, available to anyone. Some are privately owned sectors."

"Where are we going?" Harvey asked.

"We'll eventually be going there." She pointed to a semi-large dome between the Virginia Palace dome and New Hæven. Inside the dome were huge brick buildings, mills, and smoke stacks that were connected to the glass dome and vented smoke out into space.

"What's in there?" Harvey asked.

"My boss, Oliver Mason. And yes he's also my father." Violet said.

"What's with the smoke?" Harvey asked.

"My father runs a mining and smithing operation called Mason industries. I'll let him explain things to you."

The pod went passed the dome and approached a rather large, skyscraper like building, which wasn't inside of a dome, but many glass tunnels were attached to it.

"Approaching Solaris Station, please remain seated." The speaker voice said.

The pod approached the side of the building. An airlock opened on the side of the building. As the pod approached the airlock, metal clamps, clamped onto the pod and the pod entered. The airlock doors closed shut and the pod was rotated back the way it was before it launch.

"Internal pod environment synching with exterior pressure." The voice on the speaker said, "Post launch sequence, initiated.

The chairs were repositioned and the Oxygen masks stopped circulating air. Violet and Harvey took off their masks and unstrapped themselves.

"Post launch complete, welcome to Lunopolis. We at Solaris hope you enjoyed your flight and hope you choose Solaris again. Solaris: transit of tomorrow." The voice said.

"Well that was fucked." Harvey said as he got out of his chair and stretched his legs.

Violet was already up and out of her jumpsuit. She opened the pod hatch and climbed out. Harvey took his suit off and grabbed the briefcase, which he had dropped during the flight.

"Almost there Mr. Steel." Violet said, peering into the pod.

Harvey grunted as he climbed out of the pod, "I may never go back home if it means riding that thing again."

A beeping sound came from the far end of the room and a women's voice came on over a speaker,

"Please exit the airlock."

Harvey followed Violet who was already walking to a blast door that had just begun to open up. As it opened, two men in white jumpsuits and helmets walked in and went over to the pod.

"Who are they?" Harvey asked as he and Violet left the airlock.

"They're the ones that clean the pod and get it ready for re-launch." Violet responded.

Violet led Harvey down a corridor and onto an elevator, which they took to level one of the building.

"Why isn't this building inside of glass?" Harvey asked.

"Always with the questions." Violet sighed, "The outside pods need some way to get in. The whole building is air locked so there's no problem."

They got out of the elevator and found themselves in one of the glass tunnels. It was much bigger, and wider than Harvey had previously thought. On two sides of the large glass tunnel, transit tracks were stacked on top of one another and a large transit station was in front of them, several stories high.

"We'll have to take a transit car to Lexington, from there we can get to Mason Industries." Violet began to say, "Don't worry, I'll buy the tickets." She said, jokingly.

"Thanks?" Harvey said unsurely. Violet started walking off towards the station. Up to this point, Harvey did not know what to make of the entire situation. All he knew, was that she was his best hope of figuring things out, and there was still the issue of Clyde Walters?

He still had so many questions, but it looked like they would have to wait until he reached Mason Industries.

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><p><strong> Already getting some good traction and I'm only two day in, thanks to those who have liked and followed.<strong>**Always looking for feedback and criticism, good or bad doesn't matter I like it all.****Anyways, let me know what you think. I'll try to get chapter 4 up by tomorrow night or Saturday morning.**

**As always, thanks for reading**


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